Harvard Kennedy School Belfer Center Launches New Program On Technology and Public Policy

The Harvard Kennedy School’s Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs launched a new program focused on hosting research, events, and fellowships at the intersection of technology and policy at an event on Monday.

The new “Emerging Technology, Scientific Advancement, and Global Policy Program” marks newly-appointed HKS Dean Jeremy M. Weinstein’s first major step towards expanding the Kennedy School’s programming on technology and policymaking, a shift he advocated for prior to assuming his post.

“It is of critical importance that Harvard Kennedy School becomes a place where we close the gap between Silicon Valley and Washington, D.C.,” Weinstein said at the launch event, according to a press release. “We need to think about technology and government policy through a variety of angles.”

“The new Emerging Technology, Scientific Advancement, and Global Policy Program will address this need,” he added.

The program — which will host a cohort of pre- and post-doctoral fellows each year — will tackle a variety of issues, including how international policy can respond to rapidly-developing technologies like artificial intelligence and bioengineering, as well as how policymakers can balance security with innovation in the technology race between the United States and China.

J. Michael McQuade — who has held leadership posts at Carnegie Mellon University and previously served on the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology — will serve as the inaugural program director. McQuade said at the launch event that the program would offer “critical contributions to policy debates” on emerging technologies.

“We aim to offer critical contributions to policy debates over how best to harness the benefits of new tech, while at the same time managing extreme risks from these advancements — from AI, quantum computing, and biotech innovation to managing governance and national security,” McQuade wrote.

The inaugural class of fellows will come to HKS in the 2024-25 academic year and will feature six fellows investigating a range of policy areas, including U.S.-China competition in biotechnology and space, civil disobedience in cybersecurity, and the use of AI in international diplomacy and decision-making.

The program’s launch just three months into Weinstein’s term fits well into his track record of incubating scholarship at the nexus of technology and policy. At Stanford, Weinstein founded a new major in data science and social systems and the popular course Computer Science 182, which explores computer science in the lens of philosophy and political science.

Stephanie Carter — a member of the Belfer Center International Council and the wife of Ashton B. Carter, who served as the director of the Belfer Center from 2017 to 2022 — lauded the program and said it “makes great sense” to be hosted at the center.

“This program will pick up the thread of work which animated the last few years of Ash’s life, asking the crucial question: how do we take advantage of the opportunities afforded by technology for our citizens, while also guarding against its risks?” she said, according to the release.

In addition to its focus on supporting research about technology and policy, the program will educate HKS students on the latest developments in technology to prepare them for political leadership amid a boom in technological advancement. This effort will include creating a forum that places policymakers and private sector technology makers in conversation, as well as programming for selected HKS students who are transitioning into government jobs.

As an extension of the program, the Belfer Center will also partner with the Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences to fund faculty-led research focusing on issues of technology and public policy.

“The Emerging Technology, Scientific Advancement, and Global Policy Program’s mission is twofold,” McQuade wrote in a press release. “We will also train a new generation of technologically-literate young leaders so they can, with confidence, shape the world to come.”

—Staff writer William C. Mao can be reached at william.mao@thecrimson.com. Follow him on X @williamcmao.

—Staff writer Dhruv T. Patel can be reached at dhruv.patel@thecrimson.com. Follow him on X @dhruvtkpatel.